Chapter 95.1

Because they were in a hurry to go to town, Wen Nuan did not take Lele’s words to heart.

During this time, Lele would occasionally ask her when she would have a little baby.

Sometimes, she would even touch Wen Nuan’s stomach, thinking that it would be like when Sister Guihua was seven or eight months pregnant, and she could feel the fetus kicking.

However, Wen Nuan’s stomach was still flat, so there was no way she could hear anything; Lele probably just said it casually.

After Gu Qinghan carefully instructed a few things, she took the hunting team up the mountain, while Wen Nuan took Lele with Gu Qinglan onto the family compound’s car.

Because the weather was cold, Sister Guihua dared not take the children around and was also not planning to go to town with them.

However, Sister Juxiang had already woken up several children early in the morning, intending to accompany Wen Nuan to buy some New Year goods. She said that a few days ago, Quartermaster Luo had given her a bonus of more than ten yuan.

Although the amount of money wasn’t much, Sister Juxiang was very satisfied and cheerfully told Wen Nuan and the others, “This is almost equivalent to half a month of my salary, of course, I’m happy! Others don’t have it yet!”

When Sister Juxiang received this money, she was so excited that she couldn’t sleep all night. Although it wasn’t much, having an unexpected sum of money felt like her entire year of work was being recognized, which gave her a sense of accomplishment.

Moreover, the happiest thing for Deng Juxiang was being able to become friends with Wen Nuan. If it weren’t for her, she would never have been able to enter the Kitchen Unit or receive a bonus from the factory.

Hearing Sister Juxiang say this, Gu Qinglan felt happy for her and said, “Sister, next year there will definitely be even more!”

Sister Juxiang smiled even wider when she heard this: “Once spring arrives, I’ll work even harder to double next year’s bonus!”

“This bonus of a little over ten yuan is just enough for me to buy some snacks for my children and also to buy a new piece of clothing for my mother-in-law, so she can have a happy New Year.”

Since starting work at the Kitchen Unit, her children had mostly been taken care of by her mother-in-law. Without the elderly woman’s help, Deng Juxiang probably wouldn’t have been able to go to work.

Wen Nuan, holding Lele who was sitting on her lap, smiled and said to Sister Juxiang, “Sister Juxiang, you’ve worked hard all year. You should treat yourself a little for the New Year.”

Earlier, Wen Nuan had asked Chen Meijiao in Beijing to help her buy two jackets and a pair of cotton pants from there and send them over; she was too lazy to make clothes herself.

This was the confidence that came with having money.

Sister Guihua, upon hearing this, glanced at Wen Nuan and smiled slightly, saying, “Then I’ll go to the Supply and Marketing Cooperative later to buy a new cotton jacket and a new hat!”

She only had two cotton jackets, both dark blue. Hearing what Wen Nuan said, she planned to buy a brighter outer garment to celebrate the New Year.

Nearby, Xiaodong and Xiaomei, hearing their mother mention buying new clothes, immediately started clamoring, “Mom, can we also buy new clothes?”

“I want it too! I want to buy a floral one like Lele’s; it looks so nice!”

The youngest son of Sister Juxiang, Guoqing, also jumped up and said, “Mom, I want a new backpack; my backpack is all torn up!”

The children clamored together, and Deng Juxiang immediately lost her temper, saying, “Stop yelling! We’ll talk about it when we get to town. I don’t even know if I have enough money!”

Hearing her sister praise her dress, Lele smiled and looked down at what she was wearing, saying to Wen Nuan, “Mom, can I give my dress to Sister Xiaodong?”

Wen Nuan couldn’t help but laugh at the child, gently tapping her little nose and saying, “But Sister can’t fit into your dress.”

Lele tilted her head and laughed again, “Then I’ll save my dress for the baby to wear!”

“That’s a good idea; the baby will definitely love your dress.” Wen Nuan didn’t want to discourage her and asked, “So, Lele, do you want to buy a new dress later?”

The child was growing fast, and the clothes she made last year no longer fit. Before Sister Guihua had her baby, she had taken apart Lele’s winter clothes with Aunt Liang to make a new one.

The clothes Lele was currently wearing could still be considered new.

When Lele heard Wen Nuan’s question, she shook her head with a smile and said, “Mom, I don’t want new clothes.”

“We’ll save the money for the baby to buy new clothes.”

Nearby, Gu Qinglan, hearing this, laughed and said, “If there’s a baby, Auntie will buy it. If Lele wants new clothes, she can pick some out with Sisters Xiaodong and Xiaomei later.” After saying this, she pinched Lele’s cheek.

Lele pushed Auntie’s cold hand away and wrinkled her nose, saying, “I don’t want to buy that! Auntie, buy me popcorn instead!”

Gu Qinglan laughed heartily, “Oh my, our Lele is helping Auntie save money; that’s wonderful!”

Watching the two of them laugh, Wen Nuan said to Gu Qinglan, “Qinglan, don’t spend money recklessly. Save some for when you get married to Daxiang; there will be plenty of places to spend money then.”

She knew Gu Qinglan had received a raise. She often came to the family compound for meals, and Lele was the one who would cost the most money.

But Gu Qinglan spoiled Lele too much. Buying some snacks and drinks was fine, but she often bought various toys for the child, even when some were duplicates in different colors.

Wen Nuan was starting to doubt whether she had saved any money.

Upon hearing Wen Nuan’s words, Gu Qinglan’s face turned red, and she mumbled, “Who wants to marry him anyway?”

Wen Nuan looked at her and smiled slightly. “Do as you wish. You and Daxiang are both adults now; I won’t interfere in your matters.”

However, Gu Qinglan and Li Daxiang were definitely serious. It was possible that once Li Daxiang returned from his studies, he would lay everything out in front of Gu Qinglan.

When the time came, if Gu Qinglan nodded, the two of them would likely go straight to report and obtain their marriage certificate.

Gu Qinglan’s face turned red, and she seemed unsure how to answer the question. She then changed the topic, saying, “Sister-in-law, there’s something I haven’t told you…”

“Hmm?” Wen Nuan looked over at Gu Qinglan, her brows furrowing in confusion. “What is it? You’re actually hiding something from me now?”

Although she said this, Wen Nuan could tell from the expression on the girl’s face that she seemed a bit hesitant to speak.

An absurd thought flashed through Wen Nuan’s mind—could it be that Qinglan had developed feelings for someone else?

Just as Wen Nuan was lost in her wild guesses, Gu Qinglan spoke in a low voice: “Last summer, my Second Brother, Gu Qingsong, wrote to me. He found out I was in the North and got in touch with me.”

Wen Nuan had been too busy, and Gu Qinglan didn’t want to burden her further, believing she could handle it herself.

Wen Nuan asked, “And then?”

Wen Nuan had been sending money back home, but ever since the incident with Gu Qingsong and Lin Meizhi, Zhao Wuzhu had also stopped causing trouble. She only occasionally wrote to urge them to have a son…

Wen Nuan thought that after Gu Qingsong’s divorce, he must have been in a low state for a while. When he wanted to look for Gu Qinglan in that village, he must have discovered that she had already come to the North.

She just didn’t know what he wanted with Gu Qinglan.

“After Gu Qingsong found out I was in the North, he told my mom,” Gu Qinglan bit her lip and continued, “Then my mom learned that I could earn money now and asked me to send her 20 yuan every month.”

Wen Nuan frowned and looked at her. “Did you send it?”

Wen Nuan let out a cold laugh. No wonder Zhao Wuzhu hadn’t caused any more trouble; now that both her son and daughter had money to give her, life must be going quite well for her.

While it was perfectly normal for children to honor their parents, Wen Nuan didn’t want Gu Qinglan and Gu Qinghan to be unfilial.

However, Gu Qinglan had just mentioned that if she didn’t send money home, Zhao Wuzhu would come to the North to find her.

Wasn’t this a threat?

Forcing children in this way, why didn’t they show more concern about how they were doing in the army? Why didn’t they care about why Gu Qinglan had come to the army in the first place?

As far as she knew, Gu Qinglan’s monthly salary should be thirty-eight yuan. After sending twenty yuan home, wouldn’t that leave her with only eighteen yuan?

No wonder she said she couldn’t save any money; it all made sense now.

Gu Qinglan nodded, “She said if I didn’t send money home, she would come to the North to find Gu Qingsong.”

Gu Qinglan knew Wen Nuan was concerned about her, and she smiled, saying, “Sister-in-law, don’t worry. I’m not foolish; I don’t send her money every month.”

“I told them my salary is only eighteen yuan, and I said I owed a huge debt to someone in the countryside, which is why I ran away to join the army in the North. I even told them I had to pay off my debts every month, so I only send my mom money occasionally, about ten yuan in total. Later, I even asked them for money to pay off my debts, so my mom hasn’t contacted me since.”

Hearing Gu Qinglan say this, Wen Nuan smiled with relief. “That’s good. Besides, when your mom gets the money, it just goes to support Gu Qingsong. You shouldn’t be foolish enough to give them your money.”

“Of course not!” Gu Qinglan gritted her teeth. “I’m not that silly girl anymore!”

Wen Nuan reached out and patted Gu Qinglan’s head, saying, “That’s right, our Qinglan has grown up. Be a bit tougher in the future!”

“Mm, I got it, Sister-in-law.”

After a pause, Wen Nuan continued, “By the way, Doctor Zhao has already gone to your hospital. Have you had a chance to learn from the old man?”

Upon mentioning serious matters, Gu Qinglan lost her previous playful demeanor and nodded earnestly. “Of course I have. I’ve visited Doctor Zhao three times, but he’s really busy right now. However, he has agreed to let me learn from him.”

Wen Nuan raised her eyebrows and sighed in relief. “That’s good. You have to study hard with Doctor Zhao in the future; you can’t be careless, understand?”

Gu Qinglan nodded, “Sister-in-law, I will definitely study hard with Doctor Zhao; I won’t let you down.”

She could stay in the North Army largely because of the opportunity her sister-in-law fought for her to join.

And Doctor Zhao’s willingness to let her learn was also largely due to her sister-in-law’s influence.

There were some rumors in the hospital, saying that Doctor Zhao could remove his hat because he had connections above.

Others might not know, but Gu Qinglan had heard about Doctor Zhao’s situation while eating and drinking at her Eldest Brother’s house.

So it was highly likely that Doctor Zhao had received some help from her Eldest Brother and sister-in-law.

No wonder Doctor Zhao treated her with such kindness; she had benefitted from Wen Nuan’s influence. Thus, Gu Qinglan felt she couldn’t let Wen Nuan down.

Wen Nuan nodded. “I have confidence in you. Keep it up!”

Although Lele didn’t quite understand what the adults were saying, when she heard Wen Nuan say that, she smiled and, imitating her mom, said to Gu Qinglan, “Auntie, you can do it!”

“Okay, Auntie will definitely do her best. Thank you, Lele!” Gu Qinglan, noticing that Wen Nuan had been holding Lele for a while, took the child from her lap and placed Lele on her own lap.

Gu Qinglan said to Lele, “Come on, let your mom have a rest. Auntie will hold you.”

Lele was initially reluctant, but after turning her little head around, she said, “Okay, Auntie can hold me.”

“Mom’s tummy has a little baby, so I can’t bump into it.”

Gu Qinglan looked at Wen Nuan in shock. “???”

Even Sister Juxiang, who had originally been discussing what to buy with the children, was surprised when she heard Lele’s words. She looked at Wen Nuan and asked, “Xiao Nuan, is this true? Are you pregnant?”

Feeling the gazes directed at her, Wen Nuan found it a bit amusing and exasperating. “That’s not true; don’t listen to Lele’s nonsense.”

Wen Nuan thought it shouldn’t be so easy to get pregnant; otherwise, there wouldn’t be so many people facing infertility issues.

Just as everyone was about to ask more questions, the car stopped on the main street of the town.

Because it was close to the Spring Festival, the streets were particularly crowded. Sister Juxiang didn’t plan to act together with them; she intended to meet up later on the way back.

Gu Qinglan believed Lele’s words and thought Wen Nuan was denying it because she hadn’t yet reached three months, so she didn’t want to tell everyone.

Having worked in the hospital for nearly two years, Gu Qinglan had heard that many pregnant women were quite cautious about such matters.

Even if they had done a pregnancy test at the hospital, it was rare for people to openly discuss whether someone was pregnant. Most preferred to whisper about it.

So, after arriving in town, Gu Qinglan stayed close to Wen Nuan, worried that she might get pushed around in the crowd.

Whenever Lele asked Wen Nuan for a hug, Gu Qinglan was always the first to scoop her up!

Wen Nuan didn’t notice Gu Qinglan’s protective behavior; she was too busy thinking about all the things she needed to buy. Besides preparing for the New Year, she wanted to pick up some daily necessities and couplets.

After a long day of shopping for various items, including snacks and groceries, Wen Nuan was exhausted. By the time they returned to the family compound, she felt so tired that she didn’t want to move.

She asked Gu Qinglan to cook while she took a break, planning to prepare some snacks later for entertaining guests during the New Year.

However, Wen Nuan ended up sleeping soundly until after one o’clock.

—o—o—o—

When she woke up, Gu Qinglan mentioned that she had called her once but then went back to sleep.

Wen Nuan yawned and said, “I was too tired; I thought I was just taking a nap. I’ll eat something, and then you can help me knead some dough.”

Gu Qinglan let Lele go outside to play in the snow and then looked at Wen Nuan, saying, “No problem! I’ll get the flour right now. Sister Guihua just sent us some glutinous rice flour. What should we use it for?”

Wen Nuan glanced at the glutinous rice flour and replied, “Let’s save it for now. We can use it to make dumplings for the Lantern Festival.”

After buying many New Year’s goods in the morning, including nuts and candies, Wen Nuan planned to make some rice cakes and fried pastries in the next few days, which Lele loved to eat.

The entire afternoon, Wen Nuan and Gu Qinglan busied themselves making snacks while Lele occasionally came over to cause mischief and then ran off to Sister Guihua’s house to see the baby.

By around three in the afternoon, Lele yawned and said, “Mom, I want to take a nap with you.”

Looking at her drowsy little girl, Wen Nuan asked, “Lele, can you sleep by yourself? You can lie on the kang and see me making the fried pastries in the living room.”

Lele made a couple of sleepy noises, tugging at Wen Nuan’s arm and said sleepily, “Mom, you come sleep with me.”

Seeing that there were only a few pastries left to make, and knowing they would be fried later, Wen Nuan washed her hands and said to Gu Qinglan, “Qinglan, after you finish wrapping those pastries, just set them aside. I’ll take Lele for a nap first, and then we can fry them later.”

Gu Qinglan was also preparing to head back. The hospital had a meeting planned and intended to start the holiday on the afternoon of New Year’s Eve. She nodded slightly and said, “Then, sister-in-law, you take Lele to bed first. I’ll head back to the hospital in a bit.”

“Be careful, okay? If it snows, bring an umbrella. I left one in the kitchen,” Wen Nuan reminded her, gently pulling Lele back to the bedroom, planning to coax Lele to sleep before anything else.

As it turned out, as Wen Nuan was coaxing Lele, she ended up falling asleep alongside Lele.

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T/N: Sorry for the late update! I unlocked 2 more chapters as an apology! Thank you for being patient~

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